Turkey upset after mosques play WWII anti-fascist song

Published May 22, 2020
Blue Mosque of Istanbul at night. —Creative Commons/File
Blue Mosque of Istanbul at night. —Creative Commons/File

ANKARA: Turkish police on Thursday detained a woman after the public address systems of some mosques were allegedly hijacked and blared out a World War II-era Italian anti-fascist anthem.

The government and religious officials reacted angrily to the breaking of a religious taboo, mosques are supposed to only broadcast calls to prayer or other significant religious messages, accusing unnamed individuals of “sabotage”.

An unidentified woman was taken into custody, the official Anadolu news agency reported, without providing further details.

While the national religious body Diyanet filed a legal complaint and launched an internal inquiry, the Izmir prosecutor’s office said it would investigate the original incident as well as social media users who posted about it.

The song, ‘Bella Ciao’, has been adopted by leftists around the world but it has no particular association with religion and it was unclear why anyone would seek to broadcast it from mosques.

Published in Dawn, May 22nd, 2020

Opinion

Editorial

Judiciary’s SOS
Updated 28 Mar, 2024

Judiciary’s SOS

The ball is now in CJP Isa’s court, and he will feel pressure to take action.
Data protection
28 Mar, 2024

Data protection

WHAT do we want? Data protection laws. When do we want them? Immediately. Without delay, if we are to prevent ...
Selling humans
28 Mar, 2024

Selling humans

HUMAN traders feed off economic distress; they peddle promises of a better life to the impoverished who, mired in...
New terror wave
Updated 27 Mar, 2024

New terror wave

The time has come for decisive government action against militancy.
Development costs
27 Mar, 2024

Development costs

A HEFTY escalation of 30pc in the cost of ongoing federal development schemes is one of the many decisions where the...
Aitchison controversy
Updated 27 Mar, 2024

Aitchison controversy

It is hoped that higher authorities realise that politics and nepotism have no place in schools.